It is a common misconception that young people would rather chat with friends on social media than engage in political debate - as we have learned in the office of Heidelberg Mayor Eckart Würzner.
In Heidelberg, following unanticipated reaction to a proposed multimillion-euro convention centre, we discovered something interesting. The council approved the project by a big majority. At first, the public seemed disinterested. But we discovered – only by accident – that voters were talking about it on Facebook. And the opposition appeared strong.
Based on that discovery, the council shelved its plans for a new convention centre. And the mayor's office understood that it needed more reliable ways to monitor and gauge public opinion and sentiment. After researching options for a technology solution, we chose SAS Social Media Analytics.
With social media analytics, we've learned that our citizens are less concerned with the big issues and are more concerned with the smaller local topics, such as the quality of playgrounds and streets. We've also learned that while people don't often respond to direct questions, they do discuss the information we publish. When we announce a project, the volume of internet traffic goes up.
We hear the voice of the people, we dispel rumours and disinformation and we inform our citizens as they make up their own minds about the issues they care about.
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Nicole Huber is Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Heidelberg.
